Facebook Messenger Beta for Windows 10 added in Windows Store, but not available yet

Facebook Messenger app for Windows 10 is finally to be seen in reality thanks to a leaked video and screenshots. What’s more, the app listing in Windows Store too has confirmed the legitimacy of the leak as well.

It’s been nearly 5 months since Facebook Messenger for Windows 10 is in works, and finally, it seems to be heading towards a release anytime soon, revealed WindowsBlogItalia. And to back its claim, the site even has screenshots and video of the app as well to show off.

Although Facebook hasn’t confirmed the leaked screenshots and video, but the app has already been listed in Windows Store and indeed it’s the official Messenger app, being tested in a limited circle in a few countries. Right now, the app is not available for download, and a beta version of the app will be ready for prime time soon. There is a good chance of things falling in place before Build 2016 scheduled later this month.

Meanwhile, the Messenger UI, as revealed in the leaked screenshots, seems in line with Windows 10 design patterns while maintaining parity with Messenger.com that we have grown quite used to over the years. Further, the Messenger app seems to have a limited scope of being compatible with PCs and tablet devices only though it shouldn’t be too long before the mobile version too comes along.

According to Windows Store, here’s the feature list accompanying the Messenger app:

Get notifications so you never miss a message

See when you have messages waiting for you with a live tile

Send photos, videos, GIFs and more

Bring your conversations to life with stickers

Know when people have seen your messages

Create groups for the people you message most—name them and set group photos

Forward messages or photos to people who weren’t in the conversation

Search for people and groups to quickly get back to them

It was in the Microsoft’s Windows 10 devices event back in October 2015 that the company had announced there would be Facebook, Facebook Messenger and Instagram apps reaching Windows Store a few months down the line. And now, five months later, things seem to be picking up pace finally.

In addition, a beta version of Instagram app is also available right now, but it’s only available for Windows 10 Mobile and comes with the same look and feel as is the case with Instagram elsewhere. This includes posting and editing photos while also sharing them on other social channels. There is also the option to press and hold on an image to have a better view of it from a social post.

However, going with its beta status, there is a welcome message as well reminding users to provide any feedback they might have of any bugs and so on. Also, it will be interesting to see if there is going to be a PC version of the Instagram app as well, which should be the case if Facebook is indeed conforming to the UWP specifics that Microsoft has been promoting aggressively.